Snow loading and disposal machine



March 19, 1929. T. J. CHRUL SNOW LOADING AND DISPOSAL, MACHINE 5Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 23, 1926 J INVENTOR. BY 7 J' W m6). 1AM}ATTORNEY.

March 19, 1929. 1-. J. CHRUL SNOW LOADING AND DISPOSAL MACHINE FiledAug. 23, 1926 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 u u a 1 a n 1 n IN VEN TOR.

A TTORNE Y.

March 19, 1929. 'r, J (:HRUL 1,706,144

SNOW LOADING AND DISPOSAL MACHINE Filed Aug. 25, 1926 s Sheets-Sheet 3INVEN TOR.

By d M A TTORNEY.

Patented Mar. 19, 1929.

UNITED STATES TIOIIL JOHN CHRUL, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.

SNOW LOADING AND DISPOSAL MACHINE.

7 Application filed August 23, 1926. Serial No. 130,869.

This invention relates to an improved machine for removing snow from astreet or hi hway and melting the same.

he machine of the present invention embodies improvements over themechanism disclosed in my pending application for patent, Serial Number109,204 filed May 15th 1926. i The object of the present invention is toprovide a m0tordri ven machine to travel over a' street or highway; tocollect or gather the snow in front of an endless elevator so the lattermay carry it upwardly and deposit it into a heated chamber; to providemeans for agitating the snow while in said chamber and to bring it intocontact with numerous separated heated tubular flues that will furtherbreak it up and melt it and finally to discharge the water formed by themelted snow. The invention resides in the novel construction,combination and arrangement of parts herein described and moreparticularly pointed out in the claims.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein,

Fig. 1 shows the machine in side elevation.

Fig. 2 illustrates the same in vertical longitudinal section.

Fig. 3 illustrates a vertical cross-sectional detail through the machinelooking forward from the line 44 of Fig. 2.

Fig. .1. illustrates on an enlarged scale a sectional detail through oneof the tubular flues and its connection with the bottom of themelting-chamber.

Fig. 5 shows a detail of one of the adjustable heat regulators for theflues, and

Fig. 6 illustrates one of the flue shield 'devices.

Referring to Figs. 1-2 and 3 of the drawings, the numeral 10, designatesthe frame of a motor vehicle on which there is mounted a tank-likestructure or receptacle 11. This tank structure, in the presentinstance, has two side walls 12 and 13; a front wall 14; a top 15 and abottom 16.

As in my pending application, I provide on the interior of the tank andat the juncture of the front wall and bottom, a crosswise-extendingconcavity 17, which in practice extends from one side Wall 12 to theopposite side wall 13.

Beneath the bottom 16 of the tank, I prob vide a heating chamber 18 inwhich there are located a series of burners 19 which latter are designedto burn oil supplied thereto through pipes 20, from an elevated fueltank 21 at the forward part of the tank.

A main valve 22 is provided in the oil-supply pipe to cut off orregulate the fiow of oil from thetank, while independent valves 23 ateach burner enable the supply of oil to each of the latter to beregulated.

Access to the burners in the heating chamber is had by-means of a door24, provided in the side below the bottom 16 of the tank.

The bottom 16 of the tank is provided with a series of openings 25 andon the upper side of said bottomand around each of said openings, Iprovide a flanged collar 26. These openings 25 and flanged collars arearranged preferably in rows extending longitudinally as well ascrosswise of the interior of the tank, and in each flanged collar isseated a vertically-extending tubular flue 27.

Thus it is to'be understood that throughout thebottom ofthe tankthereare numerous vertically-extending tubular flues 27 Whose lower ends arein open communication with the heating-chamber 18, and whose upper endsare more or less open to the interior of the tank as will presently bemore fully explained.

These tubular flues 27, as may be seen by reference to Figs. 2 and 3 ofthe drawings, are arranged with uniformity so as to provide a series oflongitudinal spaces extending fore and aft of the tank,-the spaces beinglettered, a, b, a and d for identification, particularly in Fig. 3 ofthe drawing. The spaces are therefore formed by spaced and parallel rowsof vertical tubular flues.

The purpose of these tubular flues is threefold in that they are toconduct heat from the lower heat chamber 18, to the interior of the tankabove said chamber; they also provide numerous heated surfaces againstwhich the snow deposited in the tank may contact and thus be melted and.being spaced, the tubular flues provide a series of vertical heatedobstructions against which the collected snow will be pushed and brokenup as the snow is agitated and moved longitudinally through the tank.

I have also found in practice that some tubes, because of theirpositions relative to the burners are apt to be hot while others may ecomparatively cool but that I can practically overcome this by providingthe upper ends of the tubes with a damper means whereby to choke off thetubular passages more or less and thus by reducing the openings in thehotter tubes and providing a greater opening in the cooler tubes createa more uniform heatdistributing condition and have practically all thetubes sufficiently hot to function as intended.

Various means may be provided to effect the adjustment of the tubularpassages but I find that this can be accomplished b providing slottedplugs 28 with springngers 29 which may be forced down more or less intothe upper ends of the flues 27, to vary the size or area of the outlets30, as may be seen in Fig. 5 of the drawing.

In the tank, and extending in a direction crosswise thereof, I providetwo horizontallyextending shafts 31 and 32, which shafts have bearingsin the opposite side walls 12 and 13.

vOn each of these shafts, I mount as many sprocket-wheels 33, as thereare longitudinal vpassages between rows of tubes, in this instance, fourin number, so that a pair of sprocket-wheels will be provided for eachlongitudinal passage.

A sprocket-chain 34 extends through each longitudinal passage and passesaround the two spaced sprockets therein and each sprocket-chain has anendless series of flights or blades 35 thereon.

When the sprockets are set in motion, the chains with their flights orblades will travel longitudinally through the passages between the rowsof tubular flues,the l'ower stretch of the sprocket-chains carryingtheir flights or blades from the rear to the front of the tank and closeto the heated bottom of the latter.

.The front horizontal shaft 32 extends through the side walls 12 of thetank or receptacle and carries a sprocket-wheel 36 thereon and thiswheel and the shaft on which it is mounted are driven by means presentlyto be explained.

Secured to and depending from the top 15 of the tank and substantiallyover the rear sprocket 33 is a hopper 37 having a slide valve-plate 38on its bottom with an actuating lever 39 projecting from the tank-wall13 so that by sliding the valve the discharge of the material in thehopper may be varied or regulated.

An agitator 40 is located in the hopper and a star wheel 41 at one endof the hopper and on the end of the agitator-shaft is arranged to beengaged by the blades or flights 35 on the sprocket-chain in thepassage, d, so the agitator may be intermittently rotated.

The purpose of this hopper is to contain salt which will be slowlydischarged into the tank and facilitate the melting of the snow.

By reference to Fig. 2, of the drawing, it will be seen that the tubularflues directly beneath the salt hopper are slightly shorter than thoseforward thereof and that each of theseflues has a shield 42 over theupper end ings in the side walls 12 and 13, and this shaft carries twospaced sprockets 46 and 47.

On this horizontal shaft 45, I sustain the upper end of anelevator-housing 48 which latter has vertical side walls 49 and 50 and acovering wall 51. This covering wall 51 has a curved upper end 52, whichcurves forwardly and beneath the top wall 15, of the tank and saidcovering wall also has a curved lower end 53 which projects forwardlybetween the side walls 49 and 50.

The entire elevator mechanism is hung at its upper end on the horizontalcross-shaft 45 so the same may be rocked on said shaft and to effect acomparatively tight joint be tween the upper end of the elevator housingand the tank, I provide a hinged flap 54 on the rear end of the top wall15 of the tank, which flap seats on the upper side of the elevatorhousing and will have sliding contact therewith as the housing is swungon the shaft 45, during the act of raising or lowering the lower endthereof as and for a pur pose that will presently be explained.

At the lower ends, the side walls 49 and 50 of the elevator housingcarry a horizontal shaft 55 and this shaft has two sprockets 56 and 57thereon so that sprocket-chains 58 may travel on the upper and lowersprockets 4g5 tzi and the upper and lower sprockets 4 5 These twosprocket-chains 58 are provided with a series of angle-iron flights 59,the upper stretch of which is designed to travel upwardly while thelower stretch travels downwardly as indicated by darts in Fig. 2 of thedrawings.

The flights on the upper stretch of the sprocket chain form troughs toconvey upwardly snow which they gather as they travel around the lowersprockets 5657 and within the lower curved end 53 of the housing.

To prevent sagging of the upper stretch of the chain because of theweight of the flights and the snow gathered thereon, I provide the sidewalls 49 and 50 of the elevatorhousing with guide-railsand I alsoprovide the sprocket-chain with a series of rollers 61 which bytraveling on said guide-rails will support the load.

The elevator, to wit, the chains, flights and sprockets are driventhrough a sprocket wheel 62, on the outer end of the upper cross-shaftchain 63pass1n outer end of shaft 31, as clearly shown in 45, and thissprocket-wheel 62 is driven by a around a sprocket 64 on the Fig. 1 ofthe drawing.

The rear end of the tank has a short vertical rear wall 65 to partiallyclose the rear end of the tank and to completely close the rear end ofthe burner chamber 18.

Ground wheels 66 are provided at the lower ends of the elevator-housingso as to engage and roll on the ground as the vehicle is moved forwardand thus sustain the lower end of the housing.

Atv the lower forward portions of the vertical side plates 4950 of theelevator-housing, I provide hinged side plates 67 which may beadjustedto swing outwardly more or less and held in the adjustedpositions by means of tie-levers 68 having wing-nut adjustments.

I also provide a toggle-lever adjuster comprising two bars 69 and 70,onehaving an end 71 pivotally connected to the elevator housing, the otherhaving an end 72, pivot ally connected to a bracket on the frame and thetwo levers lapping and having a pivot connection at 73.

A bolt and wing-nut 74 on the end of the lever 69 may be engaged-in ahole 75 in lever 70 andwhen so engaged, the levers will be drawn intoalinement whereby to swing the lower end of the elevator rearwardly andraise it above the ground and out of operat ing position. i

I also provide a series of guard bars 76 carried by a cross-frame 77 atthe under and forward side of the elevator whereby to per mit the latterto ride over any large stones or other substance too big to pass betweenthe bars and said bars will serve to crush lumps of snow and allow it tofeed to the front of the elevator as the vehicle draws the elevatorforward over a street or highway.

A slide door 78, shown in broken lines in Fig. 2, is provided in theside wall 13 at one end of the agitator so that water of the melted snowmay be run off. .7

It is believed to be obvious that as the machine is moved forwardl overa street or highway, the snow will e collected at the base of theelevator where the down-moving flights will engage it and carry itaround the lower end of the housing and then upwardly into the rear andtop of the tank.

The snow will then be deposited in the heated tank about the rows oftubular flues and the conveyers 34-35 will carry the snow forwardly incontact with the heated flues and melt the same. Any unmelted lumpsbeing discharged into the forward agitator and broken up before beingdischarged through the slide door. 1

Having described my invention, I claim, 1. In a machine for removingsnow from streets or highways the combination of a wheeled vehiclehaving a tank thereon, of a series of vertical tubular flues in thetank, said vertical flues being arranged in crosswise and longitudinalrows in the tank, conveying means operating between the rows of verticaltubular flues and heating means below the bases of the vertical tubularflues.

2. In a machinefor removing snow from streets or highways thecombination with a wheeled vehicle having a tank thereon and with aheating chamber beneath the tank, of a series of vertical tubular fluesin the tank. said flues having their lower ends open and communicatingwith the heating chamber, means for varying the area of the passagesfrom the tines to the tank to regulate the discharge of heat therefrominto the tank and conveyer means operating between the flues.

3. In a machine for removing snow from streets or highways thecombination with a wheeled vehicle having a tank thereon and with aheating chamber beneath the tank, of a series of tubular flues in thetank, said flues having their lower ends communicating with the heatingchamber, and adjustable means at the upper ends of the tubular flues foreffecting a partial closure of the latter to adjust the amount of heatpassing from the flues into the tank. a y

4. In a machine for removing snow from streets or highways thecombination with a wheeled vehicle having a tank thereon and with aheating chamber beneath the tank, of

veying means operating in the longitudinal passages between the rows oftubular flues, heating means below the lower ends of the verticaltubular flues and means for varying the passage of heat through thetubular flues.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

TEOFIL J. CHRUL.

